Two children were killed and a firefighter was hurt in a house fire early Tuesday morning in south Sacramento. Fire officials said five family members were able to escape from the blaze.

The children, Ire Johnson, 11, and Israel Johnson, 6, were last seen sleeping in a room on the second floor.

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"I just woke up, there was fire everywhere. I just tried to grab people and wake them up," the children's father Jhada Cole-Johnson said.

"I tried to get [Ire and Israel]. I couldn’t get them," he said.

The Sacramento Fire Department said one firefighter suffered first- and second-degree burns to his neck and ears. He was discharged from UC Davis Medical Center Tuesday night.

Courtesy: Etta Sikich

The fire was reported just after 2:30 a.m. at a home on Babette Street, not far from the intersection of Meadowview Road and 24th Street.

Firefighters reported flames pouring out windows and doors of the home as they arrived on scene. The five family members who got out told firefighters that the children were still inside the home.

When crews got inside, the living room and stairs leading to the second story were engulfed in flames, compromising the structural integrity of the stairs, according to crews. Because the flames were so intense and were blocking the stairs, firefighters were unable to get to the children in time.

After getting into the home through a window, firefighters found the bodies of Ire and Israel in an upstairs bedroom, fire officials said.

“It was nothing I could do," Cole-Johnson said Tuesday night. "I wish I could [have] burnt up too.”

“They’re the kind of kids that, as soon as you see them walk in the room, you start giggling because it’s something about them that just tickles your spirit,” the children's mother LaDonna Lee said.

The children's aunt, Gaitoi Johnson, said the children were also good students.

"They had aspirations at such a young age, and I just can't believe that they’re gone," she said.

"[Ire] liked to bake. She was going to be a chef," Johnson added. "I guess she’ll be a chef in heaven."

Brian Hickey/KCRA

During a news conference Tuesday afternoon, Sacramento Fire Department Deputy Chief Michael Bartley said it is unknown at this time if there was a working smoke detector in the home.

Bartley said investigators don't know exactly what happened and are getting "mixed results." He said information from the investigation will be released later.